


Carnival

by JoMo3



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-18
Updated: 2017-10-18
Packaged: 2019-01-18 21:14:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12396357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoMo3/pseuds/JoMo3
Summary: On the first weekend of October, the city of Hawkins had it’s annual Fall Carnival. The quartet of Mike, Will, Dustin, and Lucas had gone for the past few years; and this year they were taking the newly returned Eleven.





	Carnival

On the first weekend of October, the city of Hawkins had it’s annual Fall Carnival. Set up in the town’s park, it included such things as a carousel ride, ferris wheel, bumper cars, and the like.

The quartet of Mike, Will, Dustin, and Lucas had gone for the past few years; and this year they were taking the newly returned Eleven.

She had appeared just as suddenly as she’d vanished, showing up in the woods near Mirkwood one day in late August.

For the time being she was sleeping in the Wheelers’ basement; a temporary solution that Mike was hoping would become permanent. Of course, he still harbored feelings for her, but was hesitant to act on them (last year’s kiss notwithstanding). Still, he loved having El nearby, and that he was able to keep the promise he’d given her a year ago.

Eleven, meanwhile, was just glad to be back and with people who cared about her. After nearly a year of emptiness, it felt good to be back in the warmth and comfort of friends.

 

So on that first Saturday of the month the group biked down to the park, Eleven gripping Mike’s jacket in both nervousness and excitement. The park was already teeming with Hawkins residents as they arrived. After parking their bikes, the group made their way to the ticket booths. After purchasing their way in, they walked into the center of the park. Immediately, El felt overwhelmed by the noise of the crowd, the people calling and laughing, and the _ding!_ of the prize games.

Mike, seeing Eleven looking worried, took her hand and asked if she was alright.

“Yes,” she said, nodding. “Loud.”

“Yeah, I didn’t think about that,” Mike admitted. “But you’re okay.”

“Promise?”

He nodded. “Promise.”

The teens made their way further in, with the boys pointing things out to El.

“Cotton candy!” Dustin exclaimed upon seeing a stand. “We gotta have El try some!”

Eleven looked at Mike, unsure. He nodded his head, saying “I think you’ll like it, El.”

So the boys and El got in line. Mike had his own money from doing his chores, while Karen Wheeler had given Eleven money to spend. Mike, ever the gentleman, paid for El’s cotton candy.

Eleven watched with wide eyes as the man behind the booth wrapped a fluffy pink concoction around a stick, then handed it to her. Holding it in her hand, she turned it side to side, unsure of where to start. The boys all watched with eager eyes.

“Just chew on it, El,” Lucas offered, his mouth full of cotton candy.

Hesitantly, Eleven took a bite of it, and was amazed at three things: first, how weird it felt in her mouth; second, how surprisingly crunchy it was at parts; and third, how good it tasted! The boys grinned as her expression turned from confusion to surprise to joy. She began to quickly gnaw at it, and had cleaned the stick before her friends were done with theirs.

“You like it?” Mike asked.

El smiled, nodding her head vigorously. “Good.”

The boys finished theirs, and they continued walking around the carnival.

A few minutes later, kids screaming in excitement and loud crashes caught El’s attention. The boys stopped walking, and followed her gaze. Grinning, Lucas said, “Ooh, bumper cars! We should _definitely_ take her on one of those.”

“What are bumper cars?” she asked.

“They’re these cars,” Dustin excitedly explained, “Where you drive around and crash into each other.”

Eleven made a face, not sure how that could be fun. Looking to Mike for help, he shrugged his shoulders and said, “It’s fun, El. Trust me.”

She nodded, and the group got in line for the bumper cars. Lucas, Dustin, and Will got their own. Mike decided to share one with Eleven to make her feel more comfortable.

“I’ll drive,” he explained as he put the harness across his lap. “You can drive on the next one, okay?”

She nodded, feeling her pulse quicken.

When it was time to start, she let out a small yelp as the car lurched forward, and she and Mike zipped around the small arena.

She had to admit, it was fun, as Mike swerved around other kids, the side of the car lightly grazing theirs.

“Fun, right?” he asked, seeing the smile on her face.

She nodded.  
What she wasn’t expecting was the bump she felt a moment later, as Lucas slammed his car into theirs.

“Dammit,” Mike said, trying to regain control of the car, as Lucas chuckled and drove away. Mike, seeing the look of surprise on El’s face, explained, “It’s okay, El. We’re alright. You’re _supposed_ to do that. Watch.”

Turning the car around, he pushed the accelerator all the way down as he caught up to Lucas. El smiled as she saw the look of determination on Mike’s face.

“Hold on,” he told her a second before _bam!_ they crashed into Lucas’ car, sending him into a wall.

“Dammit, Mike!” Lucas called.

Eleven started giggling.

They did the same with Dustin and Will, before Lucas was able to catch up and hit them again. This time when they were hit, El giggled as she held Mike’s arm as they twirled around.

A bell went off, and the cars stopped moving. Turning to Mike, she asked, “Again?”

So the group did the bumper cars again a few minutes later, El driving this time with Mike in the passenger seat. Although they got bumped a lot more, Eleven learned quickly how to maneuver the car, and was able to bump their friends a few times.

“Jesus,” Dustin said when it was over. “El’s a maniac!”

Eleven, not familiar with that word, looked to her friends for help.

“He means you were scary in there,” Lucas said. “But in a good way!”

They walked some more. Will saw an air rifle game he wanted to do; El, meanwhile, saw a game that a group of kids were crowded around. Tugging Mike’s sleeve, she pointed at the game.

“Oh, that? It’s called the high striker,” he explained. “You’re supposed to hit the bottom part with a hammer, and see if you can make that metal thing hit the bell at the top.”

Eleven nodded, looking at the prizes by the game. “Pretty,” she said, pointing to a stuffed lion.

“Why don’t you go win it for her, Mike,” Lucas teased.

“Yeah, Mike,” Dustin said, nudging him.

“Guys…” Mike said. But El had already turned towards him with hopeful eyes. Sighing, Mike nodded, and the group went over.

They watched a few kids go, and then it was Mike’s turn. Rolling back his sleeves, he picked up the giant mallet and, after raising it over his head, brought it down on the platform. The silver puck barely moved.

A few people in line began to giggle, causing Mike to turn red.

“Nice one, Wheeler!” he heard a voice shout, recognizing it as Troy’s.

“Come on,” Will said, trying to save Mike from further embarrassment.

But Mike, remembering how Eleven had looked longingly at the stuffed lion, gave the worker behind the booth another dollar to try again.

Picking up the mallet, he took a deep breath. _I think I can, I think I can…_

Raising it up, he brought it down with just a little more force, and was surprised when he saw the puck rise to the top, hitting the bell and making it ring.

“We have a winner!” the carnival worker yelled. “Pick your prize!”

Lucas, Dustin, and Will whooped and cheered, while Eleven clapped. Grinning from ear to ear, Mike chose the stuffed lion for El.

Proud of himself for coming through for her, he felt his confidence wane some when he turned to give her the lion and saw her nose bleeding.

Seeing him looking at her nose, her eyes widened and she quickly wiped away the blood. Then, smiling, she took the lion and thanked him.

“Yeah, sure,” Mike said.

“Where to, next?” Dustin asked.

The group went to Will’s air rifle game, where he won a small water gun, then walked to find another game they’d enjoy, or something new for El to try.

As they made their way through the park, Eleven couldn’t help but notice how Mike seemed a little distant. He’d still interact with the boys, but wasn’t talking as much as he usually did to her. Had she done something wrong?

“There! Let’s take El on _that_ ,” Dustin exclaimed, snapping Eleven out of her thoughts. Looking up, she saw a big circle that reached high into the air.

“What do you say, El?” Will asked her. “Want to go on the ferris wheel?”

She glanced at Mike, then the other boys. “What is it?” she asked.

“It’s just a ride,” Will explained. “It goes up and down. It isn’t scary or anything. It’s fun.”

Nodding her head, she agreed to go, and the group lined up for the ride. Lucas, afraid of heights, decided to stay on the ground and eat an elephant ear.

When it was time for Eleven, Dustin, Will, and Mike to get on, Will went to go share a car with Mike, thinking that Dustin was sharing with Eleven. But Dustin, noticing that Mike was acting distant towards El, pulled Will into his car, making El and Mike climb into a car together.

The ride started, and Eleven smiled as she was slowly lifted into the air.

“Mike?” she asked after a moment.

“Yeah, El?” he responded, looking over at her.

“What’s wrong?”

He sighed. “Nothing’s wrong, El.”

“Mike...friends tell the truth.”

He sighed again as they slowly headed towards the top. “It’s just...the game, El.”

“Game?”

“Yeah, the...high striker. You used your power to make the bell ring, didn’t you?”

She nodded, still not sure of what was wrong.

“I...I wanted to do it myself, El. _I_ wanted to win it for you, by myself.”

She frowned. “Why?”

“Because I like yo….” he stopped, feeling himself turn red. “Because I wanted to be able to do it. It’s like...remember when you made Eggo’s by yourself for the first time? And you surprised us with them?”

She smiled and nodded, remembering that happy moment.

“And remember how proud we were of you? Well, it’s...it’s kind of like that. I..I wanted you to be proud of me, El.”

Frowning, she fiddled with her hands a moment. The two sat quietly for a few minutes and pretty soon they reached the peak of the ferris wheel.

“Looks cool, huh?” Mike asked, looking around.

But as nice as it looked, Eleven was still worried about what Mike had said. Tugging on his sleeve, she said, “Mike?”

Turning back to her, he said, “Yeah?”

“I’m sorry. I...was trying to help.”

“I know, El.”

“But I am...proud of you.”

“Really?”

She smiled. “Yes. You make me happy, Mike. You’re my favorite.”

He blushed. “Um. Well, thanks El. You’re, uh...you’re my favorite, too.”

And then El felt a sudden urge come over her, to put her mouth on his like he’d done a year ago. She scooted closer, their eyes never leaving the other’s. She felt herself begin to lean in and…

“Whew! Made it, ma! Top of the world!” Dustin yelled behind them. The two pulled away, looking over their shoulders at their friends who no doubt had been watching them. Mike, feeling himself turn red, turned back around as Eleven took his hand.

 

By the time the ride was over, the sun was beginning to set, and the group decided it was time to head home. However, on their way out, Mike spied a game he wanted to try.

“Hold on, guys,” he called to his friends who walked in front of him. Turning back, they went to a game.

“Really, Mike?” Dustin asked.

“What is this game?” Eleven asked.

As Mike took his jacket off, Will explained that in this game you were given three baseballs and had three chances to knock down a stack of bowling pins across from you.

“Mike, we know you can’t throw,” Dustin teased, remembering their encounter with Troy in the quarry.

Ignoring him, Mike paid the three dollars to give it a try. Taking one of the baseballs, he let out a breath, and flung it at the pins; the ball bounced off and landed on the ground.

“Two more tries,” the carnival worker said.

Mike picked up the second ball, let out a breath, and threw it at the pins. The pins wobbled a bit, but didn’t fall. Mike glanced at Eleven to make sure she had nothing to do with it; her nose was dry, and she shook her head at him.

Nodding, he picked up the last baseball. What his friends didn’t know was that since his pathetic attempt to throw a rock at Troy last year, he had been practicing softball with Nancy every so often, and had built up a pretty decent arm.

Concentrating, he threw the last ball with all his might, and it smacked the middle pin, making them all tumble to the ground.

Letting out a whoop, he raised his arms in victory as his friends cheered him on.

“We have a winner!” the worker called. “Pick your prize!”

Smiling, Mike turned to El. “Which one do you want, El?” he asked.

Grinning, she stepped forward and looked them over. Seeing a pink stuffed lion similar to the brown one she already had, she pointed it out and the worker took it down.

Mike put both of them into his backpack as they all headed home.

 

That night before bed, Mike and Eleven were sitting on the couch in the basement; Mike playing with a Rubix cube as Eleven flipped through a book. Putting the cube down for a minute, Mike asked El why she’d picked another lion.

Smiling, she picked both animals up from the floor. Handing him the brown one, she said, “So we can both have one. You won this for me,” she said, holding up the pink one, “And it’s the one I’ll keep. I want you to have the brown one.”

He chuckled. “Thanks, El.”

“Thank you for taking me to the carnival.”

“You’re welcome. I…”

He was interrupted as she leaned across the couch, closing the distance between the two, and placed a kiss on his lips. After a moment she pulled away, unable to hide both her smile and her blush.

Mike smiled back, and took her hand.

It was a good day.


End file.
